A Valentine's Day Mystery
by Jomatto
Summary: Sora receives a Valentine's Day card for the first time in his life. Is it real, or is it a prank?
1. First Valentine

**First Valentine**

It was glorious to behold.

Who knew one little card could change a person's entire perception of Valentine's Day? It used to be just a day, a day where he saw others receive gifts when he did not. It always made him jealous. He wanted some chocolate too, damn it! But now, that has all changed.

Sora gaped at the card with wide-eyed wonderment. It was a Valentine's Day card addressed to him and him alone. The last time he received a card was in elementary school, when it was obligatory. He became conscious of where he was, standing in the middle of a hallway lined with lockers. He tucked the card close to his chest, leaned his head forward into the locker as if to hide, and glanced both ways to see if anyone was watching. His eyes didn't spot anything out of the ordinary, which was kind of disappointing. He thought maybe the person who left the card would be watching. Well, whatever, he just got a Valentine!

He shut the locker and hightailed it to class early. It was break time, and despite the powerful urge to fill his stomach with food, he didn't want his friends to see his special secret. The classroom was empty except for the teacher but Sora paid him no mind. He was as giddy as a schoolgirl. The card was laid out on top of the desk, drenched in soft hues of pink and purple. It was lovely. He never imagined being the recipient of an honest-to-god Valentine's Day card. It was a momentous occasion.

"What are you grinning about?" the stoic voice of the teacher, Mr. Leonhart—or as he preferred to be called—Leon, asked.

"Huh?" Sora looked up and caught Leon's amused smile. "Oh, it's nothing."

"You received a Valentine, did you?"

For some reason, Leon was making him a little nervous. "Yeah."

"Awfully excited for a card."

"So what?" he shouted, offended by the implication.

Leon chuckled. "You just reminded me of my high school days."

How long ago was that, a couple years? He looked like he graduated just yesterday. "Reminded you of high school? Don't tell me you never got any cards?"

The teacher shook his head. "No, I got plenty. I just threw them all away though." Oh, so he was just rubbing it in, the bastard. "It just reminded me of an incident when I was in high school. There was this couple that broke up right before Valentine's Day. The girl was cheating on him, so the boyfriend broke it off. He was so angry; he forged a bunch of Valentine's Day cards and put them in the lockers of all the nerds, geeks, and 'losers' at school. When the day finally came, they all came running after her. Even after it was revealed that it was just a prank, some of those guys were so desperate, they continued chasing after her. She eventually dropped out and moved to a different school." Sora stared blankly. "Let me ask you this, did you ever receive a Valentine's Day card before this year?"

"No."

"Don't you think it's kind of weird then that you'd get one now? Did you do anything different this year?"

"Not that I remember…"

"That card could be a trap—a prank. When things are too good to be true, it usually is. Chew on it for a while." Leon rose out of his seat and walked to the doorway. "I'm going to get a snack, watch over the classroom while I'm gone." He left.

Sora sat at the desk, dumbfounded. It was true, this was the first time he got a card and it wasn't like he did anything different or made any new friends. Maybe it was just a practical joke. The card seemed downright dangerous now. Great, thanks to Leon, all his excitement disappeared. Should he even open it? Maybe he should throw it away.

Yeah right. Like he was going to let Leon convince him otherwise. He tore the envelope open and pulled out a letter: "At the courtyard. Five o'clock." That was it? Maybe he was expecting too much? He thought it was gonna be a love confession, not a location and time. He recalled Leon's words.

A trap? Too suspicious. He antagonized over it all day, and couldn't even concentrate in class, then again, he normally didn't. He couldn't wait for school to be over. The bell finally rang and school ended. Great, now he had two hours to kill before the "meeting." He scouted out the meeting place. The courtyard was sparsely populated with few students. He found an empty bench and sat down. He might as well wait in the meantime, and began rummaging through his memory for a list of suitable suspects.

Could it be…Kairi? She was the girl closest to him, with her being his best friend and all. But it wouldn't make too much sense considering she already had a boyfriend in the most popular guy in school, Riku. Last he heard, things were great between them.

Who else was there? Oh yeah, there was Naminé, a really quiet girl who was good friends with Kairi. Did she like him? Somehow, he doubted that. She was too timid, and he couldn't see her having the courage to slip a card in his locker—not to mention, last time he heard from Kairi, she liked Roxas instead.

Then maybe Selphie? That's probably a negative. She only goes for the "hottest and cutest" guys in school, a category that he did not belong to (at least to his knowledge).

What about Olette? Nah, they didn't know each other too well. She was just a friend of a friend, and didn't spend enough time with him to even form much of an opinion, much less feelings of love.

What about Yuffie? She's a little older, but he had a sneaking suspicion that she had the hots for Leon, not that he would ever reciprocate.

Yuna? No wait, she's already attached to blitzball superstar Tidus.

Xion? Probably not.

"Hey."

Sora looked up to see Riku. "What are you doing here? Wait a minute, don't tell me…" No. NO. NOOOOOO! IT WAS A TRAP AFTER ALL.

"What the hell are you thinking? I'm not the one who gave you the letter," Riku explained.

Thank god, wait, what? "How do you know about the letter… Wait a minute, do you know who wrote it?"

He nodded his head. "Follow me."

So he did. Riku led him back into the school building until they reached a door. "Well, here it is."

"What's in there?"

Riku looked annoyed. "Find out for yourself. Later." Gone, just like that.

No matter how you looked at it, the situation screamed "trap!" A time and place with Riku as an escort? It could only be a devious set up. Whatever was behind that door had to be a trap of some kind. He put his hand on the handle and turned it slowly.

_Click._

He pushed the door open.

He saw her.

She was smiling at him.

He was shocked.

He couldn't say anything.

"Happy Valentine's Day."


	2. Second Valentine

**Second Valentine**

It was glorious to behold.

All that hard work had finally paid off. It required countless hours of patience, painstaking detail work, tears of agony, and teeth-gnashing grit to put together the perfect Valentine's Day card. It was...

A masterpiece.

She spent her entire weekend making it. It was made out of tough and sturdy cardboard material, but it was also glossy and smooth. The texture was a brilliant blend of strength and elegance. With the excellent base, she had to pull out all stops to ensure her art was topnotch. She didn't wasn't to use the generic theme of hearts, she wanted to capture exactly how he made her feel. Whenever she was around him, she felt light, as if floating in the sky. She wanted to capture that magical giddiness that welled up inside her whenever he was near. She thought of airy objects like balloons, feathers, confetti, and leaves. With a single brush stroke, she brought a wind, sending a whirlwind of sparkling debris through the card. Hues of pink, red, and blue splashed, streaked, and dotted the small canvas.

It was perfect.

"Naminé!" a loud feminine voice called.

No, no, no, not now!

Before she could make a move, the door burst open to reveal her spirited best friend, Kairi. She was a stern, pushy, and ultimately very supportive friend, the kind that helped you against your will. She was fiery like her hair, an auburn color that reminded of autumn.

It stood in contrast to Naminé's softer side. With her sweeping blonde hair and calm blue eyes, she brought a serene presence. Unfortunately, her serenity often went unnoticed; she was the quintessential wallflower.

Good thing Kairi was a firecracker.

"K-Kairi!" Naminé greeted nervously, spinning around in her chair to block her friend's view. She was hunched over her desk putting the finishing touches on the card before Kairi let herself in. Even though it was her bedroom, Kairi had a nasty habit of showing up unannounced and with a bang.

"Hey! You've been cooped up in your room for the whole weekend. Don't you think it's time to get some fresh air?" Kairi invited.

"You know what? That's exactly what I'm thinking! Let's go!" Naminé agreed wholeheartedly. She got up and started pushing the other girl out.

Kairi resisted, overpowering the blonde with ease. "Let's not get too excited now, I just barely got here! Besides…what have you been working on all this time?" Kairi tilted her head to peer around, but Naminé matched the movement.

"W-Who says I'm working on anything?"

Kairi gave her infamous _are you kidding me_ stare. "Come on Naminé. _Come on_."

"It's just some art project, that's all it is," she explained hastily.

"For some art project, it's got you pretty nervous. Mind if I take a look?"

"NO! I mean—no, not at all!" If only she had something like that in her drawers! "Just let me…uh, look for it real quick." She ran over to the desk and started pulling out compartments for any throwaway projects.

"Isn't that it right there on your desk?"

"Oh that? That's uh…nothing. Forget you ever saw it," she laughed. She tried to make a move to hide it but Kairi swooped in and snatched it.

"Then let me take a look at nothing. I got time."

"NO!" Naminé yelped, seeing the card suddenly appear in Kairi's hand. She tried to reach for it but Kairi dodged it easily.

"Now what do we have here?" Her eyes went wide, marveling at the artistry. "Oh my god, this is beautiful!" She opened the card, revealing the visual delights within. There were no words, just images, feelings captured, distilled, and splayed across the card. "Roxas will be so happy!"

Naminé's face froze. "Rox…as?"

Kairi nodded. "It's for Roxas, isn't it?"

"Uh…" she drawled out. "No?"

Kairi's jaw dropped. "Wait, then who is this for?" she shouted.

The blonde recoiled at the outburst. There was no choice but to finally confess the truth. "It's…Sora," she confessed.

"Sora? Sora! Why that bum? Roxas is way better for you!" Kairi urged, waving her arms excitedly.

The blonde raised an odd brow. "Um…just because you say that doesn't make it true."

"Wow," she gasped, shaking her head in disbelief. "Looks like I owe Roxas an apology."

"What did you say? Is that why he's been acting so nice to me lately?" Naminé probed.

"Forget I said anything," she dismissed.

"Kairi!"

"Okay! I might've told him that you…like him or…something like that," she admitted.

Naminé's face fell. "Why?"

"Because I thought you did!" she shouted back.

Naminé covered her face and fell against the bed. Her body landed with soft _thud_ and she groaned. "And what made you think that?"

"It's because you two have been friends for so long and…it just kinda made sense that way," she answered, shrugging her shoulders.

Naminé sat up straight and glared. "By that logic, shouldn't you be with Sora instead of Riku?"

"That's different! Just because we're friends doesn't mean that—okay, I see what you mean now, but still, _Sora_? What do you see in him?" she asked incredulously. It was the most foreign concept she ever heard.

"What's wrong with Sora?" she shot back, annoyed.

"Nothing, it's just…well, he's _Sora_."

Naminé smiled. "That's why. He's Sora, and he's the only Sora I know, and the one Sora that makes me happy. There doesn't have to be a reason, does there?"

Kairi frowned. It didn't make much sense to her, but that probably just meant it was genuine. "I guess…but, come on, _Sora_?"

"Kairi!"

"Okay, sorry! I'm just trying real hard to understand here, but then again, I guess that's when you know it's real. If it's really Sora you like, that I'm happy for you. How do you plan on giving him this card?"

Her face went red. "I was just…thinking that I'll slip it in his locker."

"No." Kairi gave a stern look.

"What?"

"Lemme guess, you'll put it in an unmarked envelope and just leave it in his locker, right?"

How did she know? "I—"

"I got it!" she shouted unexpectedly, slamming her fist into her palm.

Naminé flinched. "Yes?"

"Something like this _has_ to be given personally."

"I can't do that!" the blonde protested.

"Don't worry about it! Look, this is what we'll do. We'll put another card in his locker that says to meet him in the courtyard after school. At that time, there won't be as many people around, and the atmosphere will be absolutely perfect! When it's just you two, you'll give him the card, and he'll understand with just one glance exactly how you feel!"

"Bu-bu-bu-but I can't possibly—"

Kairi clamped her friend's mouth shut with her hand. "Not one more word about _can't_ out of you, understand?"

Naminé nodded.

She let go. "Great! I am so excited!"

Naminé couldn't say the same; rather, she was downright terrified.

The next morning came and the two girls met each other at school.

"Okay, do you want to do it or should I take care of it?" Kairi asked, referring to the card in her hand with the meeting time and place.

"You do it."

"Alright…I just hope you don't chicken out when it's finally time to confess!" Kairi warned. The auburn girl slipped in the card and returned. "Let's get to class."

Naminé looked at the locker and back to Kairi. "Huh? But shouldn't we wait…?"

"What for? He doesn't use the locker in the morning, only after second period."

"Oh…" She didn't know that.

"You can wait for him then, during nutrition," she smiled.

It was an agonizing two periods. What if…the card didn't make it somehow? What if Kairi didn't put it in right? What if the card slipped out when he opened it and he didn't notice, and a random student stepped on it, and that student's shoe had gum, so he would be walking around with a card stuck to his shoe until he sat down and finally realized that there was a card stuck to his shoe, and he opened it and thought that it was meant for him, ruining the whole plan?

Naminé slapped herself in the head. No way, that was impossible. Kairi should've inserted it correctly…

But what if it got lost in there? If he had a messy locker, he could miss it completely, and the card would stay stuck in there for days, if not weeks, and when he finally discovered it, it would already be too late!

Naminé slapped herself again. That was impossible. How can anyone miss a Valentine's Day Card on Valentine's Day?

But what if…somebody else put in a Valentine's Day card? What if it was also a location and time? Then he would have to decide between two meetings, and if he chose the one that wasn't hers, then the whole plan would fall apart!

Naminé slapped herself again.

And again.

And again…

Until nutrition break started.

She found herself at a good vantage point around a corner and kept watch over Sora's locker.

"NAMINÉ!"

"EEK!"

**CLANK!**

"Ohmygod, are you alright?" a bright and cheery raven-haired girl asked.

Naminé rubbed the large bump on her head from throwing it against the locker in shock. "Oh…Yuffie, you scared me."

Yuffie was two years ahead of Naminé and was known for her athletic prowess in sports. Her short black hair made her look cute, youthful, and energetic, which she was. Despite her rough exterior, she was quite caring and worked in the nurse's office as an aide. "Let me take care of that for you!"

"Oh no, I'm fine," she refused; she had a locker to watch over!

"But you're bleeding."

"I am?" Naminé touched the back of her head and felt dampness. She looked at her hand. "So I am."

She fainted.

The locker…

The locker…

"The locker!" She jolted awake, her mind still stuck in a fog. Her eyes darted around, seeing moveable drapes and beds. "Where…am I?"

Yuffie's face came into view. "Naminé? You okay? You're in the nurse's office right now."

She looked down and noticed she was in a bed. The covers were pooling by her waist. "W-what happened?"

Yuffie was sheepish. "You hit your head and you uh…blacked out."

"I…blacked out?" she gasped. "For how long!"

Yuffie rubbed the back of her head. "School's almost over now. It's a good thing that I work in the nurse's office! If I wasn't there, who knows what could've happened?"

Naminé felt something binding her head. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and saw a large white bandage wrapped around her forehead. "I have a feeling that if you weren't there to begin with, I wouldn't be here."

"Sorry!" she yelped apologetically.

Naminé fell against the bed. "That's fine…you didn't mean to do it." She started scratching the bandage. Great, how was she supposed to confess now? She looked like an idiot! What was she doing before this anyway? The card! "That's right! SOR—I mean—uh…"

"Do you mean Sora?" Yuffie grinned.

She covered her head with the covers. "How did you—"

"Kairi told me. Normally, for your kind of injury, we would call your parents right away but Kairi stopped me. She said you had a _mission_ to complete! Who am I to stand in the way of true love? I'm behind you, all the way! And Kairi says that he received the card, so don't worry about it!"

"Oh…" She was getting a lot of unexpected support lately.

"Now go out there and capture his heart!" she cheered, pumping her fists.

"Yeah…" she squeaked nervously.

Oh boy…this wasn't going to be easy, was it?

Naminé wandered around the hallways until she found her safe place: the art studio. She walked over to the window, which offered a great view of the courtyard. There he sat, on the bench, waiting for _her_. Her hands got sweaty just thinking about it. She checked the time:

4:00.

She was supposed to be out there in an hour…

Could she do it? Was it even possible? She folded her arms and rested her head, staring longingly at the object of her affection. It was hard to explain the effect he had on her, how he did it, or why it happened, it simply was. She sighed. He was too good for her. She was too weak-willed, timid, and needed everybody's help just to do something simple like confess.

What if he rejected her? Straight up just laughed in her face? Told her to get away and leave him alone forever? That would be the worst! In that case, wouldn't it be better not to confess at all? Wasn't it fine just to admire him from afar? Why take the chance and destroy everything? She could live with it. She'd soldier on, making sketches of him from a distance, never putting her hope at risk…

**SLAM!**

"I knew I would find you here," Kairi's voice greeted. "You're thinking again, aren't you?"

Naminé turned around to face her friend. "What…?"

"You're thinking that you can't do it!" she accused. "You need to stop being so down on yourself."

Her head dipped, her blonde tresses falling over like a veil. "It's no use…it's impossible for me…there's no way he likes me."

"You'll never know if you don't try," she encouraged.

"But I can't!" she yelled. "This is—this is impossible for me! I never should've gone through with it! I—"

Kairi gripped her friend's shoulders. "Calm down, Naminé! Don't have a panic attack now! Look, you can do this. I believe in you."

"You shouldn't."

"Ugh…_come on_." It was her trademark saying.

"It doesn't matter what you say, I'm not going to leave this room," she issued, pouting.

Kairi let out a long sigh and felt her temple. "You're giving me a headache!" She let her hands fall and blew on her bangs. "Fine, if you want to be a little kid, be that way." She left the room.

That was…easy.

Naminé felt relieved that she didn't have to confront her worst fears today but…she was also a little disappointed. She looked out the window and leaned her head against her palm.

Sora…

Sora…

Sora.

She pulled out her card and set it against the window. She closed one eye and held the card close to his sitting form. "Here you go Sora, you can have this…" She dropped it and sighed. "I'm such a kid…"

It would never work. Why did it have to hurt so much? Why did she have to be such a coward?

Oh well.

What was done was done. No point in dwelling.

The door to the room clicked. Naminé turned around to see Kairi leaning against the door.

"I thought you left?"

"_Come on_."

The blonde shook her head and turned to the courtyard. She saw Riku walking up to Sora. Wait, what was going on? "What's Riku doing down there?" she asked in a panic.

Kairi smiled. "If you're not going to leave the room, then I'll just have to bring Sora to you."

"What? No way!" She ran to the secondary entrance and pulled on it. It didn't budge.

"Sorry, but that door is locked from the hallway, and the only way out is right here."

Naminé gulped. She never thought that it would come to this, but desperate times called for desperate measures. She bowed, gripped her knees, and charged at the redhead. She once heard that in times of great emergency, a person could summon superhuman strength and exceed all limitations. Whoever said that was wrong. Despite her best effort, Kairi was too strong and tired out the smaller girl easily.

"Are you finished now? He'll be here any second." Kairi dragged the poor girl and parked her in a seat in front of the doorway. "Now just sit here and greet him when he comes in." Kairi walked over to the window and picked up the dropped card. "Hold on to this. When the time comes, just give it to him."

_step, step, step_

No, it was too fast. How did she look? What about the bandage? What would he think? "Kairi, what about_ this_?" she asked, pointing to the binding.

Kairi waved her hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it, it adds character! It makes you look clumsy!" she said with a thumbs up.

"That's supposed to be a _good_ thing?"

"Guys like clumsy!" She turned to the doorway. "They're coming now; I'm going to hide in the corner now!"

_step, step, step_

OH MY GOD.

OH MY GOD.

PLEASE!

DON'T OPEN THE—

Sora's amazing image revealed itself after the door swung open. He stood there, in all his goofy glory, staring at her in shock. He looked very surprised.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING? SAY SOMETHING. ANYTHING!

BUT WHAT?

Oh.

How about a day's greeting?

"Happy Valentine's Day."

Did she say the right thing?

Sora's confusion slowly melted away and was replaced with a happy grin.

"Happy Valentine's Day to you too," he replied. He walked in the room tentatively. "So uh…do you have um…something to say to me?"

"Oh! Well uh—yes! I have—please accept this!" She presented the card with all her strength, both hands gripping tightly.

He walked up to her, took it gingerly, and opened it.

She bit her lip. Would he like it?

"Wow…this is incredible! Did you draw all this?" he asked excitedly.

She nodded, her chest filling with butterflies. "Yes! It…represents…my…"

"Your…?"

"Fee—artistic ability!" she shouted awkwardly.

He blinked for a moment, but started laughing. "It definitely does!"

"Oh, for the love of—it represents her feelings!" Kairi shouted.

Sora jumped. "K-Kairi, have you been there this entire time?"

Kairi marched up to them, pushing annoying desks out of the way in the process. "That's right! And I have to say, I am very disappointed in you both! I have seen grade-schoolers move faster than you two!" She walked up to him and grabbed the card. "You see how wonderful this card is? She put her blood, sweat, and tears into it!"

"I wouldn't go that fa—" Naminé tried to correct.

"Can it, Naminé! I'm doing you a favor here. This represents how she really feels about you!"

"Eh? But I thought you said she liked Roxas?"

"I was wrong, okay! So take this card, say you like her back, and kiss her!" She shoved the card into his chest, angrily stomped outside the room, and slammed the door shut.

Sora and Naminé looked at each other.

The door opened again. "Good luck, Naminé!"

The door shut.

They laughed.

Really hard.

They didn't know why, but it just seemed very funny.

Like it was the funniest thing in the whole wide world.

By the time it settled down, they were breathing hard.

"What's…up…with…her?" Sora squeezed out in bouts of gasping.

Naminé wiped a small tear. "I think it's…relationship problems…"

"Ha ha, trouble in paradise then?"

Naminé chuckled. She had to thank her friend. Even though she lacked any subtlety whatsoever, she definitely broke the ice for them. "I guess…she sort of explained the whole situation…"

Sora returned his attention to the blonde in front of him and nervously scratched the back of his head. "Really? Wow, I never thought that anybody would even like me."

"Well I do," she admitted, embarrassed.

He crossed his arms and tilted his head. "Why?"

"I don't know why. I just do," she answered simply. "Being around you…makes me feel glad."

Sora's mouth dropped. He wasn't expecting to hear that. "You know…this is the first time a girl has ever confessed to me. It makes me really happy but…" Oh no! What was he going to say next? "What happens now?"

What happens now? How should she know? This is her first time too! "Do you…like me?"

"I—er…I don't know. I think you're cute and all but I don't really know you that well."

Her face went red from the compliment, but she almost had a heart attack. Was that a rejection? "If you don't like me then—"

"No no no! That's not what I was saying at all! I just meant that maybe…"

"We should get to know each other better?" she finished.

"That's right! That's exactly right!"

She could hear Kairi telling her _come on_ in her head right now. It was time to seize the day. "Then how about we go on a date?"

Sora smiled. "I'd like that."

Naminé came up to him and held his shoulders.

_Come on._

"Naminé?"

She captured his lips, stunning the lucky boy, and pulled back, grinning.

**"Happy Valentine's Day."**


End file.
